Playoffs and Final of IPL 2018 to start at 7pm

9 May 2018

Playoffs and Final of the 11th edition of the Indian Premier League are set to begin at 7pm instead of the regular timing of 8pm, IPL Chairman Rajeev Shukla conveyed on Wednesday (May 9).

Speaking to CricketNext, the chairman said that the decision was made considering the issues faced by viewers, at the ground and at home, with the late finishes of the games. IPL matches are going well beyond the stipulated finish time, with certain matches completeing near midnight.

“The IPL is what it is because of its fans and the tournament has over the years been followed avidly both on the ground and on television at homes,” said Rajeev Shukla. “So, keeping the interest of the fans in mind, it was decided that the play-off games and the final will start an hour earlier. So, instead of the 8pm start, the games will start at 7pm.

“It gets difficult not only for those at the stadium, but also for those watching on television as students and office-goers also need to get back to their respective stuff next morning and it helps if the game starts an hour earlier,” he explained.

Originally, Pune was scheduled to host the Eliminator and Qualifier 2. However, the moving of Chennai Super Kings home matches to the MCA Stadium has forced the IPL govering council to move those games to Kolkata.

Eliminator and Qualifier 2 will be played on May 23 and 25 repectively and Wankhede Stadium will play host to the Qualifier 1 and the Final on May 22 and 27 respectively.